Shane Black, screenwriter for big-budget action hits like Lethal Weapon, turns all the cliches of action-comedy buddy films on their head in his 2005 directorial debut. While fleeing from the cops, small-time hood Harry Lockhart (Robert Downey Jr.) stumbles into a movie audition and does so well he's hired for the role. When he arrives in Hollywood, he reconnects with a former high school hottie (Michelle Monaghan), but not before he gets tied up in a twisty murder mystery. His only chance for survival lies with private detective Gay Perry (Val Kilmer), who sidelights as a consultant for movies.